Curousity
by Ygraine
Summary: When Jack recruits a runaway he finds out a lot more about himself and the past. A past he thought he had left behind when he left Elizabeth for the last time.


Title: Curousity

Rating; PG-13. Will have more adult content in later chapters.

Disclaimer: I do not own the characters apart from those you do not recognise. They belong to Disney and Jerry Buckhiemer etc. Although I would Love to own Jack Sparrow... then again, I'm sure we all would!

Ship: Slight Sparrabeth

Sum: When Jack recruits a runaway he finds out a lot more about himself and the past. A past he thought he had left behind when he left Elizabeth for the last time.

It's pretty cheesy and cliche. But it's fun and also, 'tis a story about pirates! Arrr! Read it or ye'll be walking the plank. (Reviews and comments are much much love:D )

Chapter one

Curiosity... Indeed.

He wasn't curious, not in the slightest. He kept telling himself that as he carried on drinking his rum, but he could feel her looking at him, so nearby. What was she even doing in Tortuga anyway? Didn't she have that brat to look after? Hmph. It's not like it mattered to him anyway, if she was going to flaunt herself around him and proposition him with those... lips not to mention other appendages that happened to have got bigger after having that spawn, well that was her prerogative. It really had nothing to do with him. So really, he shouldn't feel guilty for wanting to take up on her offer, which Jack chose to think had been given if in a round about way; he was a pirate after all.

Besides her husband (if you could even call him that) would never find out, being at sea for all but one day a decade. Maybe that's why he was having second thoughts about it, the risk wasn't there. But that wasn't it either, he wouldn't want to get caught... He looked into his rum (there wasn't enough of it and he feared that it would soon be gone) and thought. Maybe... maybe it was that he didn't want to betray Will. It was as though a light went off in his head, knowing why he felt sullied suddenly made the feeling go away. He never did like being confused.

"Well, that settles it then!" He called out to no one but himself, downed the rum and slammed the tankard down. He got up wobbling a bit on the way, maybe he had had a bit too much rum... no... one could never have enough rum.

"Where ye be going Jack?" Gibbs asked.

Jack turned to him. "I am going to seek out Mrs Turner, she offered me a proposition and I'm now inclined to take it." He saw Gibbs try to decipher what he had said then gave up and go back to his drink and Jack just sauntered up to the woman who he thought he'd never see again. She smiled at him as he took her hip and pulled her forward. "It never would have worked between us darling." He said smirking.

"So you keep saying." Elizabeth whispered while taking off his hat (which to his surprise he wasn't too annoyed about.) "And yet here you are."

He laughed and his other hand took her shoulder as he raised his eyebrow. "Aye. And what would your darling William say about you now?"

"Will isn't here. And won't be for at least eight years." There was some pain in her eyes and Jack suddenly felt for her, she loved the whelp (although he often wondered why) and she never got to see him; the child would grow up without a father...

"Not getting satisfied eh?" She looked insulted but Jack just laughed. "Not that I'm complaining. If he were around, you wouldn't be here and I would spend the night lonely, savvy?"

She smiled. "I refuse to believe that 'Captain Jack Sparrow' would ever spend a lonely night in Tortuga."

He smiled, she was right enough, he would undoubtedly have found himself a whore to spend the drunken night with. "Aye, that's true." He told her. "But I cannot deny that your company is infinitely better than anyone else's on this island. Especially since you've had the bairn." He looked at her chest and smirked more to himself than to anyone else.

She still had enough dignity to at least pretend to look offended but Jack saw that she didn't care really, deep inside. She was about to say something, most likely a protest to his 'un gentlemanly manor' but he kissed her before she could get a word in edgeways.

The next morning, Jack awoke before his sleeping partner, who was sprawled under the blanket lying naked on her stomach. Silently he crept out of the bed and tried his best to dress as quietly as possible. When he was putting on his belt, which not for the first time he cursed for having so many trinkets, Elizabeth stirred. She moaned contently in her sleep and turned towards where Jack had been, as though seeking him out in sleep. He stood as still as he could possibly be until she found what had been his pillow and hugged that instead.

When he was successfully dressed he leaned over the bed and tucked Elizabeth's hair behind her ear, she moved slightly but still didn't wake. He leaned forwards and placed a kiss on her temple. "I think you'll agree with my thinking when I say it's best that I go before you wake love." He whispered very quietly to her.

Jack Sparrow walked silently out of the room, not looking back thinking that he would never see her again.

_Many years later..._

_There must be something about being a famous ship that make people want to crew it_, Jack decided on a warm September morning as what must have been the fifth person (who in their right mind was up this early?) asked him if he wanted more crew members.

"Sorry mate, we're not looking for crew at this moment in time. In a few months the 'Vacancy' flag may be flying high, but not 'til then, savvy?"

"Oh, all right then. Thank you."

Jack stopped and looked at what he thought was a man in front of him. "Oi, wait!" The person stopped and Jack took the hat off and black hair came tumbling down her shoulders. For a small moment he thought it was Ana-Maria and braced himself for a hard slap. A moment later he realized that it wasn't. She was far younger than he remembered Ana-Maria ever being and her skin was lighter. "You're a girl." He said slowly his lip curling. "Why are you wanting to crew on a Pirate ship lass?"

"I'm... I had a disagreement with my family and I think it may in fact be permanent."

"Ah!" Jack said. "Do I suspect a runaway?" She nodded and Jack sighed as a battle of his conscious took place in his head. The girl was young and any other pirate might take advantage of the girl's need to run away post haste. Would he really leave a young girl on Tortuga to be subjected to that fate? Or should he do the right thing instead of merely waving at it?

However, she would be one more mouth to feed and they didn't really need the help at the moment, not to mention one more person to split his precious plunder with. She was still standing there with a look of confusion and hope in her eyes, and when he got an idea. "Welcome to the Black Pearl lass. I'll find something for you to do."

"Thank you!" She smiled breathing a sigh of relief.

"Aye, but there's a condition. Your take of the plunder will be a smidgen smaller than the rest of the crew considering I'm doing you a favour taking you on board, savvy?"

"That's fine." She said quickly.

"Good!" Jack called holding out his hand, "Captain Jack Sparrow, welcome on board Miss..."

"Sabine." She said simply.

"No surname?" She shook her head, 'no.' "Useless things anyway. Step on board, Mr Ragetti will show you where you'll be sleeping" He looked up to the deck where Ragetti was standing, stereotypical eye patch firmly in place. "Mr Ragetti, the second cabin for Miss Sabine if you will." He nodded and the girl walked to follow him.

"We still got that cabin from when Miss Elizabeth was on board Capt'n?" Mr Gibbs asked from behind him.

"Not so much a cabin these days but an auxiliary broom closet, but aye."

Gibbs took a drink from his flask. "I've said it once Jack, an' I'll say it again. It's mighty bad luck having a woman on board."

"Yes Mr Gibbs, but you also say it's bad luck to step on board a ship with your left foot."

"Aye! 'Cause it is!"

Jack sighed. "We keep the girl lest some other pirate decides to have his wicked way with her." Jack said facing his first mate who looked thoughtful.

"Aye, that be true. You ask why she was running?"

Jack furrowed his eyebrows at the older man. "I am not her family, I am only her captain, if she does not feel fit to divulge such information to me then I shall not inquire and said information will be for her knowledge only aboard this ship. No one else will be privy to it. And that goes for every member of my fine crew." He declared with a smirk, thumbs in his belt.

Gibbs took a step forward and leaned forward and whispered something in his ear. "Oh." Jack said, his face falling from the proud smug one he was wearing a moment before. "Didn't think of that. Maybe I should go ask her."

"Aye, I think that you should Capt'n."

Jack turned and holding his hat on his head he jogged up the ramp and onto the Pearl, following where Ragetti had taken his newest crew member. She was in the auxiliary broom closet inspecting the hammock for sturdiness. "Ah, Miss Sabine, a thought has just occurred to me."

She turned to look at him, her dark eyes looking terrified for a moment. "Yes?"

"I am going to ask you a question, and I'm going to have to demand an honest answer. If you lie to me, I'll find out soon enough, savvy?"

"Of course Captain."

Jack held out a finger as to prove a point but realized he didn't know how to put it into words. "Ah... "He said to himself more than the girl. He found himself looking around the room trying to think of what to say. He hadn't been in this room in years (it was after all a broom closet now) There was a mop and a bucket as well as some tar and varnish for the deck. There was also a hair brush on a small nightstand by the hammock. Before he could tell himself not to pick it up, it was in his hands, and he turned it over, inspecting it without even meaning to. He recognized the blonde brown hair as belonging to Elizabeth, even when it was covered in dust. He really needed to forget about her... yet still he clasped onto it firmly as he looked at Sabine who was looking very confused.

"I need to know whether you are going to grow soon." He said, the hand not holding the brush went to his mouth in a rather nervous expression.

"Grow?" She asked. "I can say that I don't know what you mean and I don't think I can answer your question with a definite answer."

"By soon I mean, a certain amount of time, steadily."

"I don't know what you're trying to ask me Captain."

Mr Ragetti was loitering in the door way, who knew why... "Are you with child Miss Sabine?"

"Oh!" She said. "Am I pregnant? No. No I'm not."

Jack smiled, and flaunted his hands as such. "Good. Come with me, I'll start showing you the ropes. Literally."


End file.
